As Jerry Ed Roth prepared for heart surgery this month, doctors told the former theater director that the procedure might buy him a couple extra years for his life. Late last week, the hospital in New York City canceled the procedure on short notice. Like other hospitals around the nation, it halted what it deemed nonessential surgeries to fortify against the expected onslaught of coronavirus cases. Two days later, the 78-year-old Mr. Roth died of heart disease. …